Meet Area Superintendent: Lisa Key

With sixteen years in education, Lisa Key brings her love of all children and a stable educational philosophy to our schools.

Prior to joining the Choice Schools Associates (CSA) and MIChoice family, Lisa served as Principal at Lighthouse Academy, a school that gives at-risk youths a second chance at education. While at Lighthouse, she was nominated for Administrator of the Year 2015 through MAPSA. Before Lighthouse Academy, she served as a Principal with Grand Rapids Public Schools at a school specializing in special education and as a social worker for Pine Rest Christian Services. Lisa earned her Bachelor’s Degree from Michigan State University and her Masters of Social Work & Masters in Educational Leadership from Grand Valley State University.

Lisa explained that choosing to join the Choice family came easy for her, “My values as a person and as an educator align well with Choice and their core values. I am a servant leader who believes that all children have the capacity to grow and learn so that they can become contributing members of society. I believe society has often fallen short of that goal in a lot of ways, especially as it relates to our inner-city youth. Choice, like myself, believes that all children should have equal access to incredible educational opportunities, and Choice has a track record of offering that through the school partnerships they form and the support they provide their schools.”

There is no doubt that Lisa has been an influential part of each of her school’s successes this year. Her role allows for her to be the supportive backbone for our school leaders and guide them to become the best leaders for our kids.

Two leaders recall the immediate support and guidance they received from Lisa upon joining the Choice family as school leaders this year:

“Lisa supported me from the beginning by pushing me to truly own Macomb Montessori Academy. She set clear expectations for her role, and mine, and let me take it from there. By doing this, she empowered me to trust myself but was never more than an arm’s reach away to guide me through when I needed it. Lisa is a wealth of information and experience, and she has supported me by trusting me to follow my gut and helping craft the container for collaboration among other school leaders. She is a true model of strong leadership which is the best kind of support I can imagine.” – Ashley Ogonowski, Head of School at Macomb Montessori Academy

“When I came on board, I had a few big tasks to tackle right from the start. Lisa was there for me each step of the way with words of encouragement and connecting me to the right people within the Choice family that could assist me. Lisa is available to answer questions, talk me through situations, and listen to me. She offers suggestions and supports what we are already doing as a school, and what I am doing as a leader. I admire her commitment to doing what is right for all students.​” – Jessica Eldridge, Head of School at Battle Creek Montessori Academy

Lisa is motivated, forward-thinking, and holds the value of each child at the center of all she does for her leaders and schools. There is no doubt that Lisa will continue to make our schools shine through her guidance, support, and passion for education. We are happy to have her as a part of the Choice family!

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Choice Schools Associates (CSA) is a charter school management company. We provide services such as human resources, accounting, payroll, marketing, and more to charter schools throughout the state of Michigan. Our mission is to empower every child with knowledge, skills, character and work ethic to achieve the American Dream.